School of Acting

Immediately after the New Year holidays, in the middle of winter and the academic year, the School of Acting started with classes in Cetinje, Montenegro. Twelve students and several professors make up the newest educational institution in Montenegro. For the time being they have moved into the empty Student's Hostel and are conducting classes in some of the Art Academy's rooms. The cold winter and electricity shortages until a few days ago, as well as the impossibility of using the premises that have been allotted to them, were the first problems faced by this generation of actors. Zetski Dom, a famous theater built by King Nikola in 1888, has been given over to the Acting Academy. This beautiful building with marble halls must be heated in winter for two days before the temperature is such that any work can be done in it. Even in better days the heating of Zetski Dom was difficult, while it has become well nigh impossible now, so that the dilemma of what to do with the Acting School has arisen. For the time being it has been moved into the Art Academy building, since the art students are on their winter holidays. In the meantime, a hall in the same building is speedily being redecorated. This however, is only a temporary solution.

A Ferrari in the End

When the starter gives the signal for the beginning of this year's "GT Grand Turismo Europeo Championship" on March 11, Pavle Komnenovic will be at the wheel of a 550 horsepower Ferrari. Komnenovic is the many time Yugoslav Champion on the circular track and rallies, and one of the best Yugoslav automobilists of all time. Komnenovic is driving for the Jolly Club and is the first Yugoslav to compete with a team abroad. The GT Championship is highly rated by FIA (World Automobile Federation) among automobile producers, sponsors and the public.

Salaries

After a several-months-long "calm" primary and secondary school staff in Republika Srpska have received their salaries. But not those for July 1994 (before this they received their June salaries) or some other skipped month, but for January 1995.

Calculated according to the system: the minimal price of work multiplied by the level of education factor (the minimal price of work in the past five to six months in the RS stood at 45 dinars), a professor's salary amounts to 100 dinars, which is what they got in January. Assistant workers usually have a lower degree of education and they received 45 dinars. Between these two limits lie teachers and other workers in education with secondary and higher education.

Will educators ever receive their back pay, or has this money gone up in smoke? This is something that no one can explain, not even an assistant of the Minister for Education, Science and Culture, who, addressing the RS public and educators promised that the Ministry would "do everything in its power to find the means to make pension scheme payments, so that the educators would not be short changed." He added that he believed that educators would show a high degree of patriotism, just as when they all answered the RS Army reserve call up during the winter holidays. It was also said that there were no sacrifices that all, including educators could not make while the new state was in the making. And what is that compared to a few salaries, with which one can barely buy 20 kilos of bread, a liter of milk every day and a bit of potatoes, perhaps even a whole kilo of meat.

No Tanks

Deputy Veselin Pavicevic asked the Interior Minister the following question: "Recently 250 policemen completed training as tram drivers with the public transport company. First, how much did this cost? Second, does the Ministry of the Interior intend to start a tram unit, since it is the only Ministry of its kind in European with a police tank unit."

Interior Minister Zoran Sokolovic gave the following answer: "The professional efficiency of Ministry of the Interior members is carried out in accordance with the law, according to plans and programs, and finances have been insured for this, all with the aim of efficiently carrying out tasks established by law and within the Ministry's competency. In accordance with this, during 1994 a certain number of policemen were trained in handling public means of transport on the road, tracks and water, in order that they might successfully carry out their regular duties in various security situations. The Ministry of the Interior does not have tank or tram units, nor is their training planned."

The Birthrate

It is not true that the opposition can't agree on anything: representatives of the Serbian Radical Party (SRS), the Serbian Renewal Movement (SPO) and the Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS) consider the birthrate to be the country's number one problem: the population's natural birthrate is not small inasmuch as it is wrong...

During a NTV Studio B program the Sabac-Valjevo Bishop and his program host lamented over the fate of the Serbs who were in danger of dying out or becoming a national minority (it is hard to decide which is more tragic). Unlike indolent Serbs, the Romanies, ethnic Albanians and Muslims are procreating and multiplying...

Communism was blamed for the drop in the birthrate (and it is a well-known fact that Communism devours people and has targeted the Serbs as humankind's most precious part). The high prices were also blamed (which participants in the program agreed did not discourage the poor from having more children). It was pointed out that atheism which had allowed egotistic and conformist instincts free reign was to blame...

The Church and the opposition have a program aimed at encouraging parenthood in regions where the birthrate is down. The Sabac-Valjevo Bishop noticed rightly, that only the Serbian Orthodox church had the right to take care of its flock, just as the Muslim and other religious organizations took care of theirs.

Representatives of the opposition hold that it would be a good thing if a selective, i.e. discriminatory demographic policy were conducted, and they hope that the problem of the birthrate will reach the republican and other assembly agendas, before it is too late.

Those who might have asked some provocative questions were not invited to the round table discussion. People who would have asked a question such as: Why should the Serbs, the oldest nation, have to last the longest? If the species is not reproducing on its own territory, under its own regime, if the tribe is dying out and it hasn't faced genocide, if the obstructing of the rise of the birthrate is planned and calculated, what is there to be concerned about?

None have asked themselves the question: "What kind of a state are we living in, if to be a minority is such a disastrous thing." In a state which would truly care about its citizens' rights, Serbs would not have to feel endangered even if they were a minority. Even barren Serbs should not feel endangered (even though they might feel lonely). But, here we are, building a state of freedom, justice, equality, etc, and we believe that it would be better for these same democratic achievements if the Serbs were the most numerous nation.